Today, EA: Creatively Creative sits down with author and journalist, LeAndrea Mack.
EA: What sparked your desire to become a writer?
LM: It is an unlikely story. I would love to say that it was some profound writer or piece of scholarly literature that sparked my interested but it wasn't. I was raised with all boys. They loved to rap. They put words together with perfection. I was too shy to say my rhymes aloud so I used to write them down. Eventually, I began to experiment with story-telling. This was partly inspired by the Art of Story Telling album by Slick Rick
EA: I understand that you also have a background in journalism. Would you tell us of the work you've done?
LM: I wrote little articles for The Examiner. A few for a couple of newspapers, and then I landed a gig with AXS and got approved to cover the Essence Festival in New Orleans, Lousianna. Shortly after I became a staff writer for Twelve Magazine and did work for Midwest Hair Magazine, Delux Magazine and a host of other freelance work.
EA: Do you believe that your experience as a journalist gives you an edge in the novel writing process?
LM: YES! Writing has been a natural progression from journalism for me. I do believe the networking opportunities and friendships I made as a journalist helped out tremendously when I decided to write my first novel. I was already moving in a solid network that valued writing and literature so I reached out to individuals who I knew could lend support or suggestions.
As for my readers, they already trusted my writing as a journalist, so it wasn’t hard to convince them that they would enjoy my novel too!
EA: Were there any authors who further inspired you to become a writer?
LM: I know it’s silly, but I believe that the music industry inspired me to write just as much as other writers have. I don’t write poetically, but my writing is definitely inspired by it. However, K’wan, Jihad and Zane were definitely inspirations from the writing sector.
EA: What is the concept of the Seeing Red series?
LM: The story is about a woman, Savannah Red , who is stricken with retrograde amnesia. She learns that she was savagely beaten and left for dead, but she doesn’t remember anything. The book follows her quest to uncover who she is and what led to her brutal attack. She is stunned and terrified as she uncovers the truth of her sick and twisted past.
Take the journey in SEEING RED!
EA: Do you think writing a novel is easy?
LM: Honestly, writing a novel can be easy, but writing a GOOD novel requires focus, creativity and an ability to see from several vantage points.
EA: What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
LM: JUST WRITE. Once you have a complete story, then focus on the easier tasks that other people can help you with or you can research like editing, formatting, marketing, publishing, etc.
A lot of people get hung up in trying to prepare to write and they never get started actually writing!
EA: Finally, tell the readers why the Seeing Red series is a good read.
LM: It is a drama-roller coaster for your brain. There is always something fun and suspenseful about searches that uncover things and put puzzle pieces together. The Seeing Red novel is one of those kinds of books!
Epilogue
Wow. Slick Rick? LeAndrea knocked the dust off of that one! They don't make them like that anymore. Everyone's story and journey is different. There's nothing wrong or silly with where an artist-- literary or otherwise-- get their source(s) of inspiration. I agree with LeAndrea's analysis of writing a good novel, those traits are imperative, but I would like to add research to that list as well. The more information you can gather on a subject or story, the more knowledgeable you can become, and the better your story will be.
I thank LeAndrea for speaking with me today. For more on LeAndrea, and her Seeing Red series, visit her website at www.seeingrednovel.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment